This invention relates primarily to an animal feed supplement and, more particularly, to improvements in an animal feed supplement in block form and the attendant method of preparation wherein the ingredients set into a solid block form within a relatively short period of time.
A common practice today is to feed animals supplemental feedstuffs or mixed rations which have been fortified with nutritive elements. The feedstuffs have been developed in block form to permit free choice feeding and reduce the labor required for mixing the nutritive supplement with the animals' feed ration. Serving as an illustration of the prior art are salt blocks, mineral blocks, protein blocks and molasses blocks.
It is known in the art to prepare hard, animal feed blocks by, for example, (a) compressing and molding a mix of hay, straw, grains and the like, with or without molasses, to a desired shape and weight or (b) evaporative heating of the ingredients. The heating may oxidize or decompose heat sensitive ingredients wherein the compressed blocks have limited amounts of energy supplying ingredients. Additionally, there are modifications of method (b), showing heating and/or emulsifying agents to disperse the energy supplying ingredients. U.S. Pat. No. 3,420,672 discloses the use of gelatinized starch as an emulsifying agent in the preparation of solid, animal feed emulsions containing molasses, fatty material, urea, phosphate, bentonite and other ingredients. U.S. Pat. No. 4,016,296 shows the use of calcium oxide with a fatty acid to form a concentration of hard soap in the feed block in order to impart hardness to the block. U.S. Pat. No. 4,027,043 discloses a molasses block containing a fat emulsifying agent and a heating step in its method of preparation to disperse the solid ingredients into the liquid ingredients.
It is accordingly believed there is a need for an economical, nutritionally balanced, hard, animal feed supplement in block form containing energy supplying ingredients that can solidify at ambient temperatures in a relatively short period of time.